Chocolate Marble Cheesecake-Part 1

This is the opening stage of a two-part chocolate marble cheesecake built on a lightened base. The clever swap at the heart of this recipe is cottage cheese processed to silk-smoothness, standing in for half the usual cream cheese. You get the same creamy body at a fraction of the fat, with no graininess whatsoever if you run the food processor the full three minutes.

Neufchatel rounds out the base, carrying slightly less fat than cream cheese but all the tang. A tablespoon of lemon juice and a pinch of salt keep the flavor bright instead of one-note sweet.

The graham cracker crumb dusting on the pan is Part 1’s final prep trick, giving the baked cheesecake an easy release and a subtle crumb layer at the bottom without a full pressed crust.

Pro Tips

• Process the cottage cheese the full 2 to 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down. Under-processed cheese leaves a grainy finish you can’t fix later.
• Use Dutch-processed cocoa powder as called for. Natural cocoa has more acidity and throws the flavor balance off.
• Spray the pan evenly; a bald spot on the sides will stick and tear the sides of the cheesecake on release.
• Bring all dairy to room temperature before blending. Cold cheese lumps and streaks through the batter.

Variations

• Use all Neufchatel for a richer, more traditional cheesecake texture with slightly higher fat.
• Stir a shot of espresso into the chocolate swirl for a mocha marble effect.
• Dust the pan with crushed chocolate cookies or zwieback crumbs for a different base crust flavor.

See Part 2 for the marble swirl and bake instructions.